198 A V O Y A G E T O 



•778- lay hold of: and prefled fo thick upon him, that he was 



January. -' ' ' _ ' ' 



obhged to fire, by which one man was killed. But this un- 

 happy circumflance I did not know till after we had left the 

 ifland ; fo that all my meafures were directed as if nothing 

 of the kind had happened. Mr. Williamfon told me, that, af- 

 ter the man fell, his countrymen took him up, carried him 

 off, and then retired from the boat ; but flill they made fig- 

 nals for our people to land, which he declined. It did not 

 appear to Mr. Williamfon, that the natives had any defign 

 to kill, or even to hurt, any of his party ; but they feemed 

 excited by mere curiofity, to get from them what they had, 

 being, at the fame time, ready to give, in return, any thing 

 of their own. 



After the boats were on board, I difparched one of them to 

 lie in the befl anchoring-ground ; and as foon as flie had got 

 to this llation, I bore down with the fliips, and anchored in 

 twenty-five fathoms water; the bottom a fine grey land. 

 The Eaft point of the road, which was the low point be- 

 fore mentioned, bore South 51° Eaft; the Weft point, North 

 6^° Weft ; and the village, behind which the water was faid 

 to be, North Eaft by Eaft, diftant one mile. But, little more 

 than a quarter of a mile from us, there were breakers, which 

 I did not fee till after the Refolution was placed. The Dif- 

 covery anchored to the Eaftward of us, and farther from 

 the land. The fliips being thus ftationed, between three 

 and four o'clock, I went afhore with three armed boats, and 

 twelve marines, to examine the water, and to try the dif- 

 pofition of the inhabitants, feveral hundred of wiiom were 

 aflcmbled on a fandy beach before the village ; behind it 

 was a narrow valley, the bottom of which was occupied by 

 the piece of water. 



7 The 



